JTOK Chatter

So, three weeks ago I went to Kohls and thought “Let me look for a new bathing suit.” Ha. HAHA. There’s nothing like trying on clothes—especially bathing suits—to really hit home a weight gain.

My body is weird. I really don’t feel like I ever change my exercise habits or my eating habits but my weight will fluctuate anywhere from 10-30 pounds in a year. I’ll be a consistent amount for eight months and then I’ll gain 10 pounds and stay at that weight for a year… But obviously something has happened lately because I’m outside my normal fluctuation.

So I decided it was time. Right there in the dressing room.

Low-carb is easiest for me since I’ve done it before and I am really hoping/planning on doing it just for the initial weight drop and then continuing with something more sensible. But damn. Our pantry is filled with carbs. And I hate making dinner anyway since the kids are rarely fans of anything…so the first weeks of low-carb are super painful for that reason alone. The actual not eating isn’t that bad…

The first day wasn’t even done and I already missed alcohol. Not that I drink a lot, but maybe 2-3 nights a week I’ll have a drink.

After the first day, it was apparent I didn’t remember quite as much about low-carb eating as I thought I did. I looked at my daily totals and holy wah. Yes, I know I ate too many carbs because I was still getting into the plan (after all, I had just decided with no advance planning so we weren’t correctly stocked for low-carb) but a banana? 31 carbs. An onion (to go with the steak)? 8 carbs! That’s about two day’s worth of carbs right there! Then add in the 1 piece of pizza I had for lunch (25), the Mike’s Hard Lemonade I succumbed to (33), and the 1/4 cup quinoa and rice I knew was bad (27)…and that’s about my carbs for the week.

Soooooo…for the first few days, I decided I was concentrating on just lowering my overall food intake (which I did considerably—I caught myself gazing in the pantry about three times and walked away) and watching carbs. And that went well.

As I said, I know going into this that it isn’t sustainable long term (considering I’ve regained the 60# I lost before—though it did take 10 years and two pregnancies!) but I think the big initial weight loss that always happens with low-carb will be enough to kickstart me into a healthier future.

I think snacking/grazing is one of my biggest problems. I’ve found myself just wanting to eat something…anything…even though I’m not hungry. Portion control is another big problem. What I’ve realized after the past three weeks of pretty strict low-carb eating is how much I was actually eating before…and how little I actually need. Yesterday I ate about 900 calories and 30 carbs and at no time was I really hungry. (I usually eat more calories than that, but I was testing how very little I could eat while not being HUNGRY.) I tend to eat small bits all day long…only eating when I’m actually hungry. And at meals, I rarely take seconds and try to take smaller portions overall.

So, at one week, I was down 7#. I knew it was just first week success and wouldn’t continue (and I fluctuated lower than that during the week) but as I said, the mental reward is BIG. And the jeans that were too tight last week fit this week.

At two weeks, I was down 14.5#. YAY! A HUGE mental boost. And I even drank wine! So I think the biggest part was just not eating AS MUCH.

Then throughout the next week there was a lot of fluctuation and I gained some back (I know I should only weigh once a week but I weigh mid-week to keep myself on track). There was some not-good eating a time or two, but nothing crazy.

So this morning has been three weeks, and I’m down 15#. A bit of a disappointment considering I was at 14.5 last week, but overall it’s still a big per-week loss, so I am happy!

I’m thinking after I’ve kickstarted my weight loss for a month or so (so another few weeks?), I’ll transition to a more moderate plan (much less food overall, more fruit and veggies, etc.) because eating regular foods with the family is so much easier.

Wish me luck!